Beside Bai Shi, the fairy Irena called Lilianna tilted her head, gazing at him as if trying to decipher the aning of his words.
The wings on her back, thin as a cicada’s, beat at a high speed, allowing her to hover steadily in the air.
Drawn in by the conversation between Irena and Bai Shi, she had given up observing the Dragonkin Soldier and had co over instead.
After hearing Bai Shi’s words, however, Lilianna didn’t answer imdiately.
She looked at him and, instead, said sothing completely unrelated to the current topic:
“You have a scent about you that I find very nostalgic.”
“Besides the scent of ancient dragons, there’s also the aroma of elves.”
Bai Shi was a little confused.
He had only just t a fairy, so what were elves?
Were they the kind of beings who lived in forests, had pointed ears, and were exquisitely beautiful—the type who either completely despised or absolutely adored forming bonds with other races?
As far as Bai Shi could recall, there seed to be no written lore about them.
And he certainly had no idea when he might have co into contact with anything related to elves.
“Huh? What?”
Before Bai Shi could figure out what was happening, Lilianna had vanished from where she was.
Stunned, Bai Shi looked left and right but couldn’t find her anywhere.
He had no choice but to turn to Irena and ask:
“Is she always this... whimsical?”
Seeing Lilianna suddenly disappear, Irena turned her head away in slight embarrassnt.
In response to Bai Shi’s question, Irena silently nodded.
Bai Shi sighed.
“Well... it can’t be easy for you, looking after her...”
Irena shook her head, defending Lilianna in a quiet voice:
“...Actually, she’s quite interesting.”
In any case, Bai Shi had now experienced firsthand just how difficult these creatures were to predict.
It was as if they had no logic to their actions whatsoever, moving on whatever whim struck them at the mont.
A bit like a cat—completely unpredictable.
The next mont, Lilianna reappeared, holding sothing in her hands.
She was currently cradling a plant.
Gazing at it, a nostalgic smile appeared on Lilianna’s face.
“How rare. I thought they had all vanished.”
“Everything has changed since I returned...”
In her hands was an item called ‘Jade Dew.’
Jade Dew was a type of succulent plant saturated with the dew of night. It glowed in the dark and grew primarily near water.
Bai Shi had collected it in the Land of Shadow but was still unsure what it was for.
But that wasn’t the point.
The point was, that item should have been inside his spatial disk!
Bai Shi’s eyes widened. How did she do that?
The spatial disk was completely isolated from the outside world, its interior similar in nature to a sealed gaol.
Logically, a construct like this was impossible to breach silently unless the owner willingly broke the seal.
But just now, the fairy nad Lilianna had gone in and out as if it were nothing.
This creature, the fairy, was far too wondrous, and seed to follow a different set of rules than the other beings of the Lands Between.
If Bai Shi had to describe it, she was almost like a gag character from an animated show.
And though the various abilities the fairy had displayed should have been enough to put him on high alert...
...the thoughts in Bai Shi’s mind only reached the level of feeling slightly offended by her actions.
It was as if he held a natural fondness for her.
Although she bore so resemblance to a certain green fairy from a fan ga, he felt no malicious thoughts toward her, such as wanting to strike or kill her.
On the contrary, he had a persistent, underlying notion that she was a being of pure good will, utterly harmless.
Speed that resembled teleportation, the ability to traverse space at will, the ans to erase her own presence...
Add to that the fact that her race had a track record of helping to seal Outer Gods.
If these abilities had appeared in any other creature, Bai Shi would have definitely found a way to eliminate them or given them a wide berth.
And yet, it was difficult to harbor any ill will toward a fairy...
No, could this itself be one of a fairy's abilities?
However, having been bewitched by Miquella before, Bai Shi could sense that this natural fondness was different from bewitchnt.
Otherwise, Bai Shi wouldn’t even have had the chance to notice anything unusual.
For now, his knowledge of this species was far too limited.
Maintaining a degree of caution, Bai Shi decided to continue learning more about fairies.
She was currently the most likely chance he had of healing the Nun.
And even if a fairy's power couldn't be used to treat the Nun, he still needed to understand her existence and determine whether she was harmless.
After all, she had already ford a pact with Irena, and Bai Shi couldn't simply ignore that.
Looking at the fairy lost in her own thoughts, Bai Shi decided to follow her current topic of interest to learn more about her kind.
Bai Shi looked at Lilianna cradling the Jade Dew and asked:
“Is that Jade Dew?”
“I collected so, but I have no idea what it is.”
Lilianna held the Jade Dew up before Bai Shi’s eyes and replied:
“A very, very long ti ago, this was a material fairies used for healing.”
“Back then, Jade Dew grew all along the lush and beautiful watersides. It was everywhere, a very common plant.”
“But since the seal was broken, this is the first ti I’ve seen one.”
“I thought they had all disappeared along with the elves.”
Hearing Lilianna’s words, Bai Shi’s eyes lit up.
Fairies could heal? That was perfect.
He had been hoping she could help with the Nun's situation all along.
If her so-called "Elven healing" was effective, that would be for the best.
“Fairies use Jade Dew for healing?”
“Can you tell
more?”
Lilianna floated in the air, puffing out her chest with pride.
“Healing with Jade Dew is one of several healing arts the fairies used long ago.”
“Among all the healing arts the fairies mastered, it was one of the most effective.”
“Later on, the fairies also taught this thod to the elves.”
“Under our guidance, those elves learned this healing art quite well.”
“It was a thod that could heal almost any injury.”
Bai Shi was overjoyed. Even if she was embellishing, the effects should at least be decent, right?
Even if it wasn't quite applicable to the Nun's condition, that was fine. He could just think of it as recreating an ancient technique.
Besides, he had already formulated a plan to use the fairy's vision to heal them, which was likely more feasible than these healing arts.
Thus, Bai Shi quickly shifted the conversation back to his request for help:
“As I said at the beginning, I wish to seek your aid.”
“I want to borrow your power to try and heal so wounded individuals.”
“I wonder if you would be willing to help?”
Hearing this, Lilianna finally recalled that he had, in fact, ntioned sothing like that.
Since soone was injured, she nodded readily.
“Of course.” “In the past, fairies were always helping all sorts of creatures.”
“So, where are the injured people? Let
give it a try.”
Bai Shi hadn’t expected Lilianna to agree so quickly. He said:
“They are in the land where I found the Jade Dew.”
“That place is now completely cut off from the Lands Between. I’ll take you there later.”
Pausing for a mont, Bai Shi continued:
“The condition of the wounded is very unusual. I’ll give you a simple description now.”
“They have been forcibly fused with the flesh of other creatures, becoming one with them.”
“And the flesh they were fused with is still alive, existing as a part of them.”
“Because of this, our normal healing thods have no effect.”
Listening from the side, Irena couldn’t help but shudder at Bai Shi’s description.
What kind of scene must that be?
The re thought of it was terrifying.
As she listened to Bai Shi's account, a troubled expression appeared on Lilianna’s face for the first ti as she held her head.
“I’ve never encountered a situation like that...”
“It’s a bit hard to imagine, but if they’ve already fused, it seems like sothing beyond what simple healing can achieve.”
She had never treated such a condition.
After a mont of thought, Lilianna spoke again:
“If this were long ago, I probably could have done it.”
“Back then, there were other healing thods we could use, and we had the help of the elves.”
“But... in this era, the other healing arts can no longer be used for various reasons.”
“All I can use now is Elven healing and my own spiritual power.”
Bai Shi wasn’t surprised. That kind of problem was indeed beyond the scope of re healing.
In fact, the idea that the ancient fairies might have been able to cure the Nun on their own was what would have surprised him more.
“It’s all right. I’ve already gotten so information from Irena, and I have an idea for the treatnt.”
“If it’s as she says, that a fairy can distinguish the unique ‘concept’ of each creature...”
“As long as you can distinguish them, I can use my abilities to separate them.”
Lilianna finally relaxed, her cheerful expression returning.
“Of course a fairy’s eyes can distinguish them!”
“Want to try?”
Before Bai Shi could respond, Lilianna had already placed her hand on his forehead.
A surge of power was transferred toward Bai Shi, waiting only for his consent to flow into his eyes.
Bai Shi didn’t hesitate. He relinquished control, allowing Lilianna’s power to enter his body.
Instantly, the world in Bai Shi's eyes completely changed.
—And just as instantly, he actively shut that vision down.
Covering his eyes, Bai Shi didn’t even want to recall that experience.
Suffice it to say, a three-hundred-and-sixty-degree field of vision was not sothing a human used to seeing with two eyes could quickly adapt to.
The strange perspective was montarily too much for Bai Shi to handle.
It was incredible that Irena was able to adapt to such vision.
However, after personally witnessing this so-called fairy's perspective, Bai Shi was certain.
Lifting his head, Bai Shi nodded toward the two before him.
“It’s definitely feasible.”
Even if it was only for an instant, the fairy’s perspective had shown Bai Shi a glimr of hope.
Now, all he needed was for either Irena or Lilianna to assist him, and he could begin the treatnt.
Lilianna laughed, flying circles around Bai Shi.
“It would be wonderful if they can be healed.”
——
After settling the Dragonkin Soldier, Bai Shi brought Irena and the others back to Stormveil Castle.
Standing on the bridge wasn’t a solution; it was hardly a place for conversation.
And Bai Shi still wanted to learn more about fairies.
Fairies were no ordinary creatures. Now, not only were there no clear written records of them, but even the legends had faded into obscurity.
Sitting in a chair in the reception hall, Bai Shi quietly listened as Lilianna spoke about her kind.
“We fairies are a species born from life itself.”
“In the era before the Crucible even appeared, fairies already existed in the Lands Between.”
Lilianna painstakingly set down her teacup, which, even in the smallest size, seed far too large for her.
Bai Shi raised an eyebrow, surprised that the fairies’ origins were so ancient.
They had appeared even before the Crucible erged and life began to differentiate.
Then again, it wasn't that strange.
After all, ancient dragons already existed before the Crucible's birth, so the existence of one more race like the fairies wasn’t out of place.
Lilianna shifted to a more comfortable position, floating in the air, and continued:
“Unlike you, who were born from the Crucible, we are born from the consciousness of living beings.”
“In other words, we are born from your hearts~”
“That’s why fairies have different appearances in different eras.”
“Besides my current form, there were fairy dragons, and even fairy cats, you know.”
“Oh, by the way, my favorite ti was when the ancient dragons ruled the world.”
“Back then, we fairy dragons had streamlined bodies and vibrant colors. We were so elegant!”
Seeing Lilianna’s attention wander as she kept steering the conversation off-topic, Irena quickly coughed a few tis to stop her from repeatedly reminiscing about that ti.
Irena looked a bit helpless. It was clear Lilianna really did love that form.
Bai Shi didn’t mind her scattered thoughts; after all, it brought him more information.
The existence of fairies was truly unique.
If they were born from the will of living beings, it was no wonder it was so difficult to feel hostility towards them.
Then, Bai Shi asked the question he was most concerned about:
“In that case, do you know of the blue-clothed fairy who once aided the master of the Flowing Sword in sealing an Outer God?”
When Lilianna heard Bai Shi ntion one of her kind, a look of joyful surprise appeared on her face.
“Ah, you must be talking about Aelia!”
“She passed on her legacy and fulfilled her mission. That’s wonderful.”
“In that case, I need to try harder too.”
Bai Shi couldn't help but glance at her.
The so-called legacy was likely referring to the Flowing Sword.
A fairy bestowed the Flowing Sword upon a blind swordsman, who was then able to seal an ancient god—the god of rot.
Was sealing gods the mission of fairies?
Curious, Bai Shi asked:
“So, you also carry a legacy and have a mission to seal a certain god.”
Lilianna nodded, acknowledging it.
“Yes.”
“The aning of my existence is to completely seal the Frenzied Fla.”
Cupping her face in her hands, Lilianna pouted and said:
“It’s just that, after I broke my own seal and found Irena as the one to entrust my legacy to, I discovered that the presence of the Frenzied Fla is now hard to find in the Lands Between.”
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